direction

[Ahava_Melantha]

I'm sorry if I've posted this issue before but would love some input. Right now I feel lost and kind of just blah all over with my BD Direction. I'm not sure what I want to to study and how to move forward.
To make belly dance gains so to speak.

 

[Farasha Hanem]

How did you start out in this dance? What drew you to it, and what have you studied so far? What were your past goals, and did you meet them? Maybe by going over the past, you might get a clearer view of what you want to achieve in the future.

 

[Shanazel]

Sometimes you just need a vacation. Take a class in something completely different for a while- hip hop, ballet, flamenco, tap, pole dancing. In agriculture, fields benefit from a fallow period. Dance might as well.

 

[Ahava_Melantha]

Farasha ~ not sure how I started out. My mom and grandma showed me belly dancers because of my heritage. but, belly dancing isn't native to my father's country lol

I've always had this "je ne sais pas" attraction to belly dance. some electric vibe that I just can't describe

as for style, I had no real idea on what I learned in the begeinning years. It might have been modern am cab and maybe with some egyptian influences?

Right now I'm going back to a beginner belly dance dvd. BUT its not for baby beginners. For those who have some basics down. I have realized I need to touch up on my 3/4 shimmies

but coming up for 6 weeks i'm taking an online intensive with Rosa Noreen about ballet for belly dancing. maybe this will be my chance.

 

[Farasha Hanem]

Oooooooooo, I want to take that same intensive, but don't have the money now. Hopefully it will get your creative juices flowing again. Rosa is fantastic; I have her All About Arms instructional DVD. Enjoy the intensive!

 

[Aniseteph]

I know what you mean about the Blah factor. I would love something to get excited about, but belly-dance wise I am as about as directionless as it is possible to get.

 

[Ahava_Melantha]

One dvd set I always come back to is Ranya Renee's baladi set. I dance Raqs Sharqi so much better, especially accents. yay.

I get distracted easily so I think i'll do that. go back to some of my more advanced beginner dvds. actually finish them lol.

 

[Greek Bonfire]

If you want something really different, try Turkish 9/8 style, as that is almost a dance venue in itself. But I think we've all had this rut time at one point or another.

As an aside, I am currently studying flamenco, and as much as I believe flamenco descended from bellydance, it is a huge challenge. There is no possible way any six week wonders can come out of flamenco!

 

[Shanazel]

I did a double take at the term "rut time." I suspect the meaning that immediately comes to my mind as a biologist who lives close to the outdoors and bugling elks is different than that which comes to the mind of a lady from Chicago. :lol:

 

[Farasha Hanem]

If you want something really different, try Turkish 9/8 style, as that is almost a dance venue in itself.

Turkish 9/8 is hard! @____@

 

[~Diana~]

I am just coming back from what you are entering now. I fell out of love with BD 2 years ago and ended up taking a complete 2 year hiatus. No music, no dancing, nada. I waited until I got the draw back for just bellydance in general. Then I started taking a tribal fusion 5 week class to see how I felt after that. I started looking at different styles videos, listening to different styles of music. I've just got my dance spark smoldering again. I am leaving the style I used to dance (only one here to learn at the time) for 8 years behind and now focusing on learning Tribal Fusion.

You might just have to take a break from everything and then come back with a fresh perspective. Not necessarily have to be off long like me, but might be worth it.

 

[Roshanna]

I was in a 'blah' stage and am just starting to emerge from it now. What has helped me get unstuck... Hmm. Having some breaks from my day job and daily routine, which has given me some space to unwind and reflect a bit. Going to a week-long intensive course learning difficult choreography to perform, which kicked me out of some of my automatic dance habits. Taking some workshops with teachers I haven't studied with before. Taking on a new private student who is incredibly enthusiastic and loves all the Arabic music I play for her (including the Oum Kalthoum!) and starting to reconsider teaching weekly classes again, which has made me think more about how I plan my practise and how I conceptualise dance... And taking some private lessons with my dance mentor again after a bit of a hiatus, which has given me a clear list of things to work towards, and some evidence of solid progress over the last year even though I feel like I've been in a rut.

 

[Ahava_Melantha]

thank you all for the advice.

I"m taking Rosa Noreens' Ballet for Belly Dancers Online Intensive. It is intense. and its harder than I thought it would be but its great and my dancing is changing, hopefully for the better. My ankles are getting stronger. my releve is getting so much better. among other things

so its working great. Directiong can be hard when I'm working on my own.